Appafiatus for destroying submarine boats



G. E. ELIA.

APPARATUS rm: oasmoyme SUBMARINE sous.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31119.11

Patented J uly 8, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

G. E. ELIA.

APPARATUS FOR DESTROYING SUBMARINE BOATS! APPLICATION FILED JULY 3!.19H.

'1 ,309, 1 20. Patented July 8, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

G. E. ELIA.

APPARATUS FOR DESTROYING SUBMARINEBOATS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31,1911.

1 ,309, 1 20. Patented July 8, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

4 UNITED STATES PATENT e es.

egcovnnnrnmanunnn ELIA, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

arrmamus ron. nrsmovine SUBMARINE BOATS.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GIOVANNI IEMANUEELE ELIA, a subject of the King ofItaly, residing at the Hotel Ritz-Carlton, New York city, in the-countyof New York, State of New York,-have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Apparatus for Destroying Submarine Boats; and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact descriptionof the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to whichit aplpertains to make and use the same.

's invention is directed to the provision of an apparatus for destroyingsubmarine boats and involves the use of a barrier adapted to be placedin position in the sea where it may be engaged by a submarine boat and amine associated with the barrier and provided with automatic firingmechanism such that when the barrier is engaged and ruptured by asubmarine boat the mine will be automatically exploded.

' matically operated when the barrier is- It has been proposedheretofore to place nets in the sea where they may be engaged v by asubmarnie boat, the net being relied upon to arrest the boat or havinautomatic signaling devices associated with it such that when the net ispropelled through the water by a submarine boat, the signaling deviceswill be actuated automatically to indicate the fact that the net'hasbeen engaged. The utility of such nets, whether they are provided withthe si aling devices or not, is greatly decreased 1f the submarine boatsare able to disengage themselves from the nets, as by being providedwith cutting devices which sever the cables of the net.

The present invention contemplatesthe use of a barrier which is intendedto be broken by the submarine boat and involves the application ofcharges of an explosive and firing devices therefor which areautobroken. The barrier may be in the form of a single cable which ispositioned by means of suitable anchoring devices below the surface ofthe sea and across a path which is apt to be traveled by submarineboats. A single cable may be employed or two or more cables may bearranged one below another. The charges of the explosive are connectedto this cable and the automatic firin mechanisms therefor are under thecontro of the cable so that when the cable is broken, the firingmechanism is set in operation. Each mine Specification of LettersPatent.

preferably consists of a casting containing the explosive, a float whichis normally held submerged by the cable, and a firing mechthe waterdueto its buoyancy and by its up.

Patented July 1919. 7 Application filed July31, 1917. Serial No.183,665.

ward movement operates the firing mechanism. The firing mechanism may beactuated by a reel on which a cable is wound, the other end of the cablebein connected to the float so that the ascent of the flbat causesrotation of the reel and thereby actuates the firing mechanism.

The invention will be readily understoo by reference to the followingdescription taken 1n connection with the accompanying drawings, in whichFigure 1 is a diagrammatic view of one embodiment of the invention;Figs. 2 and 3 are views similar to Fig.

1 illustrating slight modifications of the construction illustrated inFig. 1; Fig. 4 is a central sectional, view of the charge and its firingmechanism; Fig. 51s a View in elevation showing the float held in itsnormal position on the mine casing by the cable: and Figs. 6, 7 8 and 9are detail sectional views showing v features of construction" which maybe employed in the construction of the mine and the cable.

Referring first to 1, the cable which constitutes the barrier adapted tobe engaged and broken by a submarine boat is in dicated at 10. It isheld in position submerged below the surface of the sea by means ofsuitable anchoring devices. These may consist of cables 11 connected attheir upper ends to the horizontal cable 10 and at their lower ends toanchors 12. When the anchoringdevices 11 consist of flexible cables,these ma extend up to the surface of the sea and ave buoys 13 connectedto their upper ends, the function of which is to maintain the horizontalcable 10 at the selected depth and in a horizontal position. If desired,when the depth of the water permits, the anchoring devices 11 mayconsist of long poles driven into the sea bed and having the horizontalcable 10 affixed thereto.

Between each pair of adjacent anchoring cables or poles 11 is a mine ora plurality of mines, each provided with afiring mechanism which isautomatically operated when the cable 10 is broken. Each mine referablyconsists of a casing 14 for e exmechanism for the charge in the casingplosive and a float 15 normally held toether bythe cable 10 and anautomatic. flrin i1 mechanism for t e charge of ex'plo sive 1n thecasing 14. actuated by the upward movement-of the Heat 15 when 1t.1s

- released from the cable 10. The section of v the cable 10 at the rightof Fig. 1 1s shown as broken by a submarine boat 16. Its

breaka e results in release of the float 15 from t e casing 14 and theupward movement of the float 15 to or toward the surface of the seacauses actuation of the firing 14 by drawing out a cable 17 ft'or'n thecasing 14 and thusactuating the firing mechanism within the casing. Thecasing 14 and float 15 are'normally' held together by having the cable10 pass through openings in overla pin portionsof these two parts andwhen 51c cable 10 is broken by the boat 16,

- the end of one of the two parts of the broken cable is drawn out ofthe opening in these two parts by its own weight so as to release thefloat from the casin The breakage of the cable 10 would usual y occur atthe point where the cable is engaged by the stem or other portion of thesubmarine boat.

Fig. 2 indicates a modification of the construction indicated in Fig. 1consisting in the provision-of means for determining at what point thecable 10 will break, so as to effect the release of the float 15 morereliably. and with less chance of a delay which might result in allowingthe submarme boat 16 to proceed on its course out of the ran e of thecharge in the casing 14 before t e charge is ex loded; In the Fig. 2construction the cab e 10 is weakened attwo points, indicated at 18,onopposite sides of and close to the mine. For this purpose the cable 10may have sections 18 of relatively soft metal inserted therein so thatwhen the cable is subjected to strain by being engaged by a movingsubmarine boat, the cablewill part at one of these two weakenedsections, leaving but a short end of the cable to be withdrawn from themine in order to release the float from the casing for the explosivecharge.

In Fig. 3, but a single weakened portion is provided in each length ofthe cable 10 between a pair of adjacent anchors 11, and

this single weakened portion is at the point where the cable passesthrough the openings in the mine as shown at 19. In other re-,

spects the constructions shown in Fi 2 and 3 are like that shown inFig. 1. 1g. 4 illustrates the construction which I prefer to employ forthe mine. In this fi re the casing for the explosive charge is s own at14 and the float at 15. -Within the'casing 14 is a central tubecontainin the primer 20 and directly above this is it e firin pin 21carried by a vertically movable cad 22. Within an upper compartment ofthe casing the naoaigo 14 is a reel 23 mounted for rotation on thecentral t'ube'of the casing. This reel has'a cable'24 wound thereon andthe free end of the cable is connected to the float as shown at 25. Nearthe end which is connected to the float, the cable 24 is connected to 'apin 26 which passes through an arm 27 on the in a block 28 w ich issecured to the rec 23. When casin 14 and enters anopenin inv theposition shown, the pin 26 prevents the first part of the uward-movement causes withdrawal of the pin 26 from the block 28 soas tofree the reel for rotation and thererotation of the reel 23; when thefloat 15 is detached from the casing and begins'to rise,

after the drawing oil of the cable from the reel 23 by the upwardmovement of the float causes rotation of the reel.

The hub 29 of the reel is extended up- Y wardl and near its upper; endis interiorly threa ed to coact with a t the lower end of which iscontracted somewhat to forman interior shoulder adapted to enga e a headon a rod 31 which lies within t e tube The lower end of this rod isexteriorlythreaded and engages threads and normally this spring is notunder tension.. The construction of these parts is such that whenthereel 23 is rotated by the drawlng off of the cable 24 therefrom, the

and the tube 30 cause upward movement of the tube;when the tube is thusmoved upward, the shoulder thereon engages the lower end of the head onrod 31 so that thereafter the rod moves with the tube and hreaded tube30, I

coacting threads on the hub 29 of the reel as the rod moves upward, itcarries with it the shaft 32 and head 22, resulting in compression ofthe s ring 34. When the upward movement 0 these parts has continued sofar that the outer ends of the keys 33 come opposite a circumferentialoove 35 on the interior wall of the tube 0 the easing, the keys 33move-outwardly, due to the tapered coaction of the interior ends of the'keys with the circumferential groove in the lower end of the shaft 32.This outward movement of the keys 33 projecting their ends into thegroove 35 releases the head 22.

from theshaft 32- and the head is then 'driven downward forcibly by theexp nsion of spring 34 driving the firing pin2 into primer 20 andexploding the charge Withm the casing 14. The threaded connection of therod 31 to the shaft 32 afl'ords a ready means-for adjusting theapparatus for firing the charge after the desired length of the cable 24has been drawn ofl from the reel 23; by turning the .rod 31, thedistance through which the tube 30 must be raised float 15 and extendsbeyond the top wall of the float. In the projecting end of the tube 37is a transverse open1ng.' It is through this opening that the cableforming the barrier extends to normally hold the float and the casingfor the explosive char e together. Fig. 5 shows the end of the tu e 37projecting above the upper end of the float 15 and the cable 10 passing7through the transverse opening in tube 3 These same parts are shown insection in Fig. 6.

If desired, the construction employed at the upper end of tube 37 may besuch as to facilitate the movement of the broken end of the cable 10through the transverse opening in tube 37 -so as to release the floatfrom the casingfor the explosive. Thus, in Fig. 8, the upper end of thetube 37 is shown as having a roller 38 mounted therein and on the top ofthe float 15 two similar rollers 38 are mounted. The cable 10 passingthrough the transverse opening in the tube 37 is en aged on one side. bythe roller 38 within t e tube'and on the other side by the two rollers38 mounted on the float. These rollers turn freely so that when thecable 10 is broken, the resistance to move- 'ment of the broken end ofthe cable out Figs. 7 and 8, the cable 10 is shown as having a section39 of metal therein provided at its central portion with acircumferential groove such that the strength of the cable at-thisgroove is less than at any other point. Metal inserts 39 may be providedin the cable 10 on opposite sides of the tube 37, as indicatedin Figs. 2and 8, or a sin 1e such. insert may be provided at the polnt 19 wherethe cable 10 passes through the tube 37. Another construction which maybe employed is indicated in Fig. 9 where the ends of the cable 10 aresecured to metal pieces 40 which fit together by a tongue and grooveconnection, and a pin 41 passes transversely through the overlappingparts of the tongue and groove. When this construction .is employed, thestraining of the cable 10 results in shearing of the pin 41 and the endsof the severed cable are drawn out of the transverse opening in the tube37 so as to release the float from the mine casing.-

. The construction described therefore in -volves the combination of abarrier adapted to be positioned in the seat below the surface so thatit may be engaged and broken by a submarine boat, and a charge ofexplobroken by having the breakage of the barrier release a float whoseascent under its own buoyancy operates the firing gear of the explosivecharge. The anchoring cables for the horizontal cable which is to bebroken sive provided with an automatic firing device which s actuatedwhen the barrier is by the submarine boat may be placed as 3' closetogether as-conditions warrant and a mine placed between each pair ofanchoring cables. If desired, cables 10maybe provided at diiierentdepths and a mine maybe connected to each one of the several parallelcables. When the cable is broken and the float thereby released, theascent of the float takes place quickly so that the-firin of theexplosive charge occurs after such a s ort interval of time as topreclude the possibility that the submarine boat willhave proceeded onits way far enough'to be out of the zone of dange Iclaim:

1. Apparatus for destroying submarine boats comprising the combinatlonofa barrier of substantial length dapted to be anchored in the seaextending between substantially fixed points in position to be engagedby a submarine boat, an explosive charge connected to the barrier, afiring mechanism for the charge and means for maintaining the firingmechanism normally under tension to operate it to fire the charge,

said firing mechanism being normally held against operation by theanchored barrier whereby'when the barrier is broken by being engaged bya submarine boat the firing mechanism is released and is operated bysaid force to fire the charge.

2. Apparatus for destroyin submarine boats comprising the combinatlon ofabarrier adapted to be submerged in the sea in position to be engaged byasubmarine boat, an explosive charge, a firing -mechanism therefor, anda fioat'for operating the firing mechanism held submerged by the barrierand released when the barrier is broken.

3. Apparatus for destroying submarine boats comprising the combinationof a barrier adapted to be submerged in the se in position to be engagedby a submarine boat,-

a casing containing an explosive and a float held together in asubmerged position by the barrier and released from each other when thebarrier .is broken, and a firing mechamsm for the explosive in thecasing connected to the float and operated thereby when the float isreleased from the'cas in'g; sub-- stantially as described. v v

4. Apparatus for destroying submarine boats comprislng the combinationof a barrier adapted to be submerged in the sea inv position to beengaged by a submarine boat, a casing containing an explosive, a firingmechanism for the explosive including a reel which operates the firingmechanism when it is rotated, a float which with the casing is -heldsubmerged by the barrier the breaking of the barrier operating torelease the float casing for an explosive charge havin ,adapted tobesubmerged in the'sea in position to be engaged by a submarine boat, a

bular extension thereon, an annular float through which the tubularextension passes, the .end of the tubular extension beyond the floatbeing provided with transverse opena tuing through which thecable-extends, a firmg mechanism for the explosive charge, and

a connection from-the float to the firing mechanism through which thefloat operates the firing mechanism when the float ascends in the waterafter being released from the casing by the withdrawal of the cable fromi the transverse opening in said tubular extension; substantially asdescribed.

In testimony whereofI affix my signature,

GIOVANNI 'EMANUELE ELIA.

